New Website!!!

Change your bookmarks & links... we're moving!

http://www.lovingtheoverlooked.com

Why? Not only will the new site give us a catchy URL address, but it will also allow us to house our two sites (this blog & the website) at a single address. How great is that?! Let us know what you think of our new digs. If you're interested in following our ministry and lives, please visit our new all-in-one website HERE.

What's your dream?

Today we remember the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. I am always inspired by Dr. King's speeches. I've posted the end of his famous "I Have A Dream" speech below. Read the entire speech HERE (the audio version is also available via the link).

Reading this speech (his passion for justice and reconciliation) brings one set of questions to my mind: What is my dream? What am I willing to fight for, to be jailed for, or even to give my life for? And then... What am I doing to see this dream out?

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. This is the faith with which I return to the South. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."

And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!

Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of California!

But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!

Let freedom ring from every hill and every molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"

What is your dream?

Friday Photos: 16/1/09

Happy Friday! Hopefully our friends in Illinois aren't frozen stiff by this point. As you plan your travels next year, let me simply inform you that Athens came in at a wonderfully mild 62.6 degrees today (17c). That fact probably hurts more than the bone-chilling wind across your face. Either way, here are some pictures from last week. Enjoy!

Sofia getting some pointers on tickling techniques from her uncle Ryan.

2 1/2 feet - even if a little slanted

Another of Kristin's birthday creations - quite the magician with a bit of flower and sugar.

Sofia really digging into her birthday cake

1 Year Old

Here's a quick look at Sofia's birthday celebrations (one with each side of the family). Enjoy... she sure did!!

Home Sweet Home

We've made it back to Athens! Although our plane left two hours late, we had a wonderful trip from Chicago to Munich. We were able to get a "bassinet seat" (a little bed that hangs on the wall that divides the economy class from the rich people) for Sofia. She slept eight hours on the plane! In Munich, however, we missed our connecting flight to Athens - since we left Chicago two hours late - and had to wait five hours for the next flight. Sofia, it seems, felt the need to make up for the wonderful trans-Atlantic flight by crying, screaming, and fussing for entire the 2 1/2 hour flight from Munich to Athens. But, we're over that now and we've made it home safely.
We've spent today cleaning the house (even with them shut, a lot of dust gets in under the doors... so we returned to dust-slicked floors), grocery shopping (we had nothing), and napping. We're doing our best to get Sofia back on a functional schedule. We'll update everyone soon - or as soon as we get our heads back straight from our sleep deprivation. Talk to you soon!

Friday Photos: 09/01/09

Happy Friday from chilly central Illinois. We headed to Chicago this afternoon, and then we're boarding a big jet plane on Saturday night. We had a great time here visiting family and friends, but are excited to get back to our life in Athens. Here are some photos from the second half of our time in the States (in Springfield, IL).

Bringing in the New Year!

Sofia stealing her cousins' Christmas gifts

Olivia (L), Sofia (C), Isabella (R)

Sofia and her "number one" birthday cake

3 Days Left

Because of some power outages in the Chicago area, we spent our first night in America in a Holiday Inn Express. The next morning, we hit the breakfast buffet like Tom Hanks in "Cast Away" (the movie where Hanks is stranded on an island). Now, we eat well - very well - in Greece, but we simply aren't used to the selection, the options, the choices that are available in the United States everyday. Kristin, again, felt overwhelmed the next day at Target, looking for baby food. Rather than a half dozen varieties (what Kristin usually finds in Greece), she was taken aback by an entire row of "infant nutrition" products.

We're had a very nice time in America, but have experienced some of the "reverse culture shock" that we've read about (nothing serious... I'm not coming home from Target and crying in the corner tucked up in the fetal position). We've had a great time. We've spent time with family and friends, celebrated Christmas and New Year, celebrated Sofia's birthday (which is tomorrow!), watch the chicken pox come and go, and enjoyed some R & R. We return to Greece in just three days. Although we will miss our family and friends, we are excited to return home.

V-A-L-U-E-S

Do you remember our fall retreat last November? Well, don't worry, I don't expect you to. We talked about ministry values. I've compiled some of the themes and developed the following list of ministry values for my own work at Helping Hands (i.e. this is not our official organizational statement). Do lists like this mean much to you? Do you find them helpful?

(1) Because we believe in the revelation of God’s Word, we value the authority of scripture and commit to minister and live under its authority.

(2) Because we believe in salvation by Jesus Christ alone, we value evangelism as acts of gospel demonstration and words of gospel proclamation.

(3) Because we believe in the Lordship of Jesus Christ, we value intentional and relational discipleship as the means of living under His Lordship.

(4) Because we believe in God’s heart for the overlooked, we value refugees and others who are often disregarded by the world.

(5) Because we believe in the Kingdom of God, we value acts of compassion, justice, reconciliation, and mercy as signs of His rule in this world.

(6) Because there are no insignificant people in God’s Kingdom, we value the individual as the starting point of God’s redemptive work.

(7) Because God gives unique talents, passions, and gifts, we value community as the highest expression of team ministry.

Friday Photos: 02/01/09

Happy 2009! We hope that your first day of 2009 was a great kick start to the new year. We're enjoying our time here in America. We have one week left before returning to Greece on the 10th. Here are some photos from our first 10 days (spent in the Chicago area).

Sofia did remarkably well on her first time plane ride.

Sofia gets to celebrate her birthday twice! This shot is from her first celebration - with the Jorna side. Kristin made her carrot cake muffins (she really loved the frosting!).

Sofia exhibits a bit of youthful enthusiasm while opening her gifts on Christmas day!

Spending some time downtown with friends!

The only negative so-far: Sofia got the chicken pox!

Re-Focusing for 2009

Good Bye, 2008 - Hello, 2009! Okay, as the clipart implies, I find it harder to stay awake until 12am than in previous years. But, all the same it's time once again to welcome a new year. This is always a natural time to formulate lists of resolutions and the like. I don't have any great resolutions this year (I never make it past January anyway), but I have been thinking about a few goals for the new year. Goals isn't even the best word. More like changes in focus, or re-focusing. These are less tangible and harder to measure than "work out three days a week" or "quit smoking," but helpful, nonetheless, in preparing my mind for some changes I'd like to make.

Local Church - Again and again over the past year, God has convinced me of the importance of the local church. There's absolutely nothing like it! Working at a "para-church" ministry, it is important to "come along side" the local church, rather than try to replace it (even if the local church is not particularly healthy). This year I want to work both (1) more within our local congregation and (2) building connections between the ministry of Helping Hands and the ministry of the local churches in Athens.

Discipleship - Discipleship and leadership development are two of my passions in ministry. Yet I often spend more time on other projects - necessary and good projects, mind you - rather than following through with my vision for discipleship. Over January and February, I will unload myself of a few time-passion-life sucking responsibilities and free myself up to focus on discipleship.

Hospitality - Now that Sofia is a bit older (almost one year!) and on a more regular schedule, we want to use our house as a ministry tool. We hope to set aside one evening each week to intentionally minister to refugee friends at the house: food, laughter... life... together. We enjoy unique opportunities to practice this sort of hospitality, both because of WHERE we live and the fact that we're married.

This list is not a finished work. But these are a few thoughts that Kristin and I have shared over the past few months. What about you? Any resolutions, goals, or re-focusing for the New Year?

Unleashing the Church

"The local church is the hope of the world," as Bill Hybels has said. I must agree. God has ordained His Church to take Christ both to our neighbors and the nations. Our ministry in Athens understands the importance of partnering with local churches to carry out the Great Commission (Mat. 28:18-20). One day, we would love to see the local church in Athens take the lead in outreach to the refugees here. We see glimpses of this at times (we're very proud of the work of our church here in Athens - 2nd Evangelical), but we're still far from realizing this dream.
Below is a video produced by International Teams challenging the church to be what God has made it to be: God's instrument of redemption for the world!

Friday Photos: 26/12/08

We hope that everyone had a very merry Christmas! No new photos this week (haven't uploaded them on the computer just yet)... but enjoy some of the Christmas joy from Athens at our Christmas Outreaches earlier in the month.

Me with two Afghan friends

Jim enjoys some time with the young ones.

Gary & Ilir with two new friends.

Mustafa, an old friend from Iraq.